Georgia 12-Year-Old Loses Both His Parents to COVID a Month Apart

A 12-year-old Georgia boy lost his mother to COVID-19 just a month after his father died of complications related to the coronavirus, WRCB reports.

Heidi Hammond, a 44-year-old first-grade teacher at Chatsworth Elementary in Georgia, passed away Friday. Her death arrives just a few weeks after her husband, 51-year-old Sean Hammond, succumbed to the virus. Sean was prepping to begin his first season as the new football coach at Hammond Creek Middle School in Dalton, GA.

The couple leaves behind their 12-year-old son, Marshall.

“They were completely two of the most dedicated parents to Marshall that I have ever encountered,” Misty Silvers, a friend of the family told the local news outlet. “Their worlds revolved around him.”

Sean’s brother, John Hammond, told the Daily Dalton Citizen that the couple was not vaccinated, but they were healthy and extremely active before they got sick.

“We come from a family of teachers and coaches,” John, a teacher and coach at Southeast Whitfield High School, said. “Our uncle was a head football coach. Our dad was a coach and teacher.”

John revealed that his brother contracted the virus just three weeks before his death.

“He was in bed for a few days, and when he didn’t start feeling better he went and got tested for COVID-19,” Hammond said. “It was positive. Heidi got it, too. She tested positive. Marshall, their son, tested positive as well. But he just got the sniffles.”

Hammond also shared that Marshall will be living with his grandparents for now.